


Berlin

by orphan_account



Series: A Tale of Seven Cities [4]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Family, Fluff, Multi, married au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-09
Updated: 2018-04-09
Packaged: 2019-04-20 19:03:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,706
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14267565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Friends are the family you choose and the friends of Jughead and Betty just happen to be the parents of the girlfriends of both of their children. So, when they all go away to celebrate the anniversary of the publication of Jughead's first book its no surprise that they'd take their friends with them.





	Berlin

Berlin 

Berlin was an escape for everyone. Kevin and Fangs had suggested the holiday to Jughead, Betty, Veronica and Archie and all of them had grasped at the opportunity. As well as that, their children, who were all sixteen, apart from Henry Andrews, who was fourteen, needed a break as well. They’d all had to deal with the fame of their parents whether it be because of their parents being famous writers; a fashion designer and a singer-songwriter; or two very successful directors.

This annoyance had led to all the children becoming incredibly close to one another. In fact, Violet Andrews and Juliet Jones had now been dating for three years now whereas Matthew Jones and Eleanor Keller had been together for six months. So, for them, this was their first holiday abroad as a couple, and both couples were ecstatic about it.

“I never thought I’d see the day where my daughter would be dating a Jones.” Fangs murmured to the other adults as they watched the adolescents while they took photos of one another or spoke quietly in hushed voices. The parents were gathered watching them as they sipped at coffees.

“And nor did I presume that Matt would ever fall for El, but life’s full of surprises.” Jughead smiled at his old friend as Betty leant her head against Jughead’s shoulder.  Jughead then turned to look at Archie. “Though one blonde girl with Cooper blood managed to end up with an Andrews and you have to admit, they’re perfect for one another.”

Archie chuckled at that before grimacing at the sight of Violet and Juliet kissing too passionately for it be to deemed respectable. “I only wish that they wouldn’t have such public displays of affection.” He murmured causing Veronica to giggle.

“Little Vi gets it from you, Archiekins. You’re the one who can’t always control themselves.” His wife pointed out while Juliet snapped a picture of Violet before smiling at her and brushing a lock of red hair out of her eyes.

“You’re not one to talk, V. You’re just as bad, but we don’t mind. We’ll just have to get used to our kids being like this.” Betty beamed at her best friend before her eyes moved over to her son to where he was sat on the edge of the fountain in front of them holding hands with Eleanor Keller. The two of them were smiling together as Eleanor moved to tuck a lock of raven hair under Matt’s beanie as he played with her chocolate brown curls with his free hand.

“I don’t know if we can call them kids anymore.” Kevin murmured, looking at the young woman he’d adopted when she’d been abandoned by her parents five years ago. The young Brit had settled into life with them happily and was family now, regardless of what other said.

“I know, our babies are growing up, aren’t they? Even Henry is, and he’s only fourteen.” Veronica replied as she watched her son walking around the square, taking pictures of the surrounding areas.

“At least they’re not like us at that age.” Archie pointed out causing all of the adults to nod in agreement. They hadn’t had brilliant lives when they were younger after all.

“Yes, because at that age, we solved a murder mystery. Veronica moved to Riverdale and had to deal with her parents being involved in some seriously dodgy business. Archie was a fuck boy, no offence, for a bit and slept with a teacher before having to watch his father being shot in front of him. Kevin was dealing with heartbreak and loss while his dad had an affair with his boss. Fangs joined a gang and got beaten up quite a lot. Jughead was homeless for a bit and lived in at the Drive-In and then under the stairs at our high school.” Betty paused for a moment before looking up at her husband, who gulped as she added: “I’m still annoyed at you for not telling me about that.”

“Sorry, Betts.” Jughead interrupted her train of thought causing her to give him a look which in turn made him throw his hands up in mock surrender. “Sorry, please continue.”

“Anyway, then you joined a gang, cut off the skin of Penny Peabody, did a bit of drug running because you were being blackmailed. And finally, I was being forced to be perfect while being harassed by a psychopath before inviting another psycho into my home and having to deal with that, so yes, Archie, it is safe to say that it is good that our kids aren’t like us.” Betty finished causing all of them to stare at Betty because she’d stated it all so frankly.

“Feeling any better?” Jughead asked after a few moments when Betty had taken in several deep breaths before she turned to look at her husband. There was no anger or annoyance in his eyes, just a mild bemusement.

“A bit,” Betty admitted sheepishly as she moved closer to her husband, who held her tightly to him as she rested her head on his shoulder again. The two of them instantly felt calmer and settled back.

“That’s good. Now let’s all of our children enjoy the lives that we were denied.” Jughead addressed all of the group who lifted their coffee cups to toast to that.

“Okay,” Betty mumbled in reply as her eyes shifted to her son and his girlfriend.

...

By the fountain, Matthew Jones stared at his girlfriend with a small smile. Green eyes occasionally met brown eyes, but often he’d look away until he started speaking. Then, he would feel safe enough to look at Eleanor in the eyes. “So, basically there’s a brilliant palaeontology display that I’d like to see at the museum including the fossils of Tyrannosaurus Rex that the palaeontologists are calling Tristan.”

“Tristan?” Eleanor asked with a smile as she imagined this terrifying creature with the name of Tristan. It just didn’t seem to fit the image in her mind of the dinosaurs.

“Yes, El, they called a member of the Tyrant Lizard King species Tristan. Though, I have to say they should be called Tyrant Lizard Queen because the females were larger, more deadly and generally stronger, so you know, they obviously need to rename them.” Matthew started to ramble, but Eleanor didn’t care about that because she genuinely admired how lost her boyfriend could get into a subject.

“I doubt that will happen, Matt, but it is a great thought. You’ll have to tell me about each fossil when we go there tomorrow.” She smiled at him while rubbing circles on the back of his palm causing him to glance back at her.

“Are you sure that you won’t get bored?” Matthew asked, still unsure whether or not she enjoyed him talking so much about what he was interested in. Juliet would often tell him when she was bored, but Eleanor never dared to do that.

“I may be a neurotypical, Matt, but I love how passionate you get. You’ve taught me so much, and I love hearing about your passions and obsessions.” Eleanor informed him with a heart-warming smile. She didn’t care that everyone viewed her boyfriend as strange or weird. He was her Matthew, and she wouldn’t change him for the world.

“Okay, just so I know. I can’t read people very well.” Matthew smiled shyly at her as she rested her head on his shoulder and moved closer to him. His arm wrapped around Eleanor’s shoulders as she spoke quietly, so only he could hear.

“I know that Matt, and I love you for every part of you. You know that right?” Her eyes had lifted to meet his, gaze and he nodded at her.

“I know that El and I love you too,” Matthew mumbled before Eleanor moved to press a soft, short, but sweet kiss on his lips.

 ...

“Vi! Jules! Do you know where we’re all going tonight?” Henry called out, interrupting the two girls, who were about to start kissing again. His dark curls caught the sunlight while his bright brown eyes shared their expressions.

“Henry, can’t you see we’re in the middle of something?” Violet asked as she swept a lock of red hair out of her eyes and rounded on her brother. She sighed dramatically as her hands fell to her hips before she glowered at the fourteen-year-old.

“Vi, breathe.” Juliet placed a hand on her girlfriend’s shoulder before turning to Henry, who she smiled at. There wasn’t a person in the world who wasn’t comforted by the smile of Juliet Jones and Henry instantly relaxed.  “Henry, we’re going out to that restaurant we all liked because it’s the anniversary of Dad’s first book being published.”

“Oh, right. I loved ‘River Edge.’ Though I think Dad was a bit of an idiot.” Henry shuddered at the thought of all the things that Archie had gotten up to during high school. In fact, all three of them shuddered at the thought. Jughead’s books hadn’t gone into an awful lot of detail, but they had mentioned what they’d all done.

“True, true.” Violet murmured, still disturbed at what Archie had done or who he’d slept with, but that was all in the past now, and she wasn’t going to hold it against him.

“Just be glad he can’t hear you at the moment.” Juliet pointed out to the siblings causing them to turn around and look at her.

“Are you saying that your dad isn’t an idiot?” Henry asked indignantly glaring up at Juliet, who held her hands up in mock surrender before she replied quietly.

“He’s an idiot for sure, but he’s always made up for it. After all, as Kev says, Bughead is endgame, though sometimes that does creep me out a little.” Juliet pointed out grimacing at both the ship name and the fact that Kevin referred to their relationship in the same way as they might refer to characters on a TV show.

“Agreed.” Henry and Violet nodded, sharing her dislike.

...

Evening had set in with a light breeze as the families sat down together in the large, exquisite restaurant in the heart of Berlin. Jughead watched as everyone settled into their places before he addressed them all with a smile. “Well, as everyone here knows, today is the anniversary of the publication of ‘River’s Edge and I wanted to thank you all for being here with me to celebrate it.” They could all see how awkward he was with addressing them all, but they smiled all the same as he fiddled with something in his hands. “And because of everything that Betty has done for me over the years, I think that it is only fitting to give her this.”

A small grey beanie in the shape of a crown found its way into Betty’s hands causing tears to gather in her eyes. “Oh, Juggie.” She held back a sob as he passed her the beanie.

“You’ve become my safety blanket, so I no longer need this anymore.” Betty looked into his piercing cerulean eyes and then pressed her lips to his in a short gentle kiss. When they broke apart, Jughead murmured: “I love you, Betty Jones.”

She beamed up at him and replied: “Jughead Jones, I love you.” Memories of their first declaration of love caused both of them to tear up slightly.

The waiter awkwardly interrupted their moment to take all their orders before scurrying off, much to everyone’s amusement. After a moment, Jughead turned to the five children and asked: “So what have you lot all been doing today?”

“Well, Dad, Vi and I went to the Berlin cathedral with Henry before heading to the shopping centre. It was a beautiful place honestly, and you would have been inspired. You’ll have to take Mom there tomorrow.” Jughead raised his eyebrows at Juliet, who just pressed on. “And Vi bought this dress for me seeing as today is also our anniversary after all.” She indicated to the beautiful blue dress that she was now wearing before looking over at Violet, who beamed at her.

“And they were both incredibly sappy all day,” Henry added causing all the adults to chuckle at his frustration. The two girls rolled their eyes at him and wanted to point out that they hadn’t wanted to spend all day with him either. However, they weren’t able to as the redheaded male Andrews spoke up.

“You’ll get used to it, Henry. We had to because we’re friends with Betty and Jughead.” Archie pointed out, giving Jughead and Betty a side eye. Betty merely let out a heavy sigh while Jughead went full sarcastic mode.

“Thanks, Arch.” Jughead’s voice was all but dripping with sarcasm, though his titian friend didn’t seem to register that.

“You’re welcome,” Archie replied cheerfully causing everyone, except Matthew to chuckle. Like Archie, he struggled with sarcasm, but just as his head dropped so that he looked down, Eleanor took his hand and squeezed it gently before mouthing: _Jughead’s being sarcastic._ At that, he joined in with the laughter, understanding finally as he squeezed Eleanor’s hand in thanks.

“Do I seriously need to explain sarcasm to you again?” Jughead asked, his eyebrows raised as he looked over at his friend from behind his glasses.

“Juggie.” Betty scolded lightly causing Jughead to glance at Matthew, who was clutching Eleanor’s hand, indicating that he hadn’t understood. Yet, when Jughead met Matt’s eyes, he also received a small smile which comforted him.

“Sorry, Betts,” Jughead mumbled, his cheeks turning ever so slightly pink before he turned to his son and his son’s girlfriend. “Anyway, what did you two do?” The two exchanged a glance and a smile before Eleanor looked up at Jughead.

“Erm, we went to the DDR museum before heading to the Topography of Terror. It was incredibly moving to see the Berlin Wall as well.” Eleanor started before glancing at Matthew, who could retain more information on it than she could.

“Especially all the graffiti on it. Someone had spray painted ‘Why?’ onto it and we both found ourselves thinking the same thing. It definitely was thought-provoking.” Matthew added. It was clear that out of the group, he was the quietest, though no one craned to hear him. They all nodded and smiled at him in understanding as they had the feeling that both he and Eleanor, who loved history would have already had a lengthy discussion on the subject.

“We’ll have to go there tomorrow or on Friday.” Betty decided causing Matthew to smile at her gratefully because he knew that his mother would go and look at every article and scrape of information to be able to talk to him about it.

“Definitely.” Jughead agreed with the same ambition in his mind. The couple opposite him beamed at that, incredibly grateful for the two of them and their drive to understand.

“That would be a good plan, but can we also ask what you two were talking about by the fountain?” Kevin leant forward, looking directly at his daughter, who rolled her eyes in response.

“Seriously, Dad?” Eleanor asked causing the other adults to chuckle as Matthew squeezed her hand gently.

“Yes, El.” Fangs chipped in with a smirk making Eleanor blush. She wasn’t one for discussing previous conversations.

“Daddy, really, you too?” Eleanor’s bottom lip jutted out as she did her best puppy dog eyes, which usually worked on Fangs. He never usually probed, but the others were getting in on the act.

“I think we all want to know, El.” Veronica pointed out, also leaning forward in her seat to grin at the couple, who exchanged a glance.

“I’m definitely interested.” Archie contributed. Like all the others, he wasn’t above teasing or probing the couple for information, and so far they could all see that Matthew was dealing with it alright, so they carried on.

“Come on guys,” Violet added, her smile widening as she watched her two best friends exchange a series of glances.

“Seriously?” Matthew asked them all as he ran his free hand over his slacks. Eleanor beside him was fidgeting with her necklace as all of them stared.

“Yes, Matthew.” Betty was grinning but was mentally preparing to go into full mother-bear mode if the need arose.

“Mom,” Matthew complained, his eyes meeting hers, telling her silently that he was alright.

“Matt please?” Jughead caught his son’s gaze but asked more softly than anyone else had, though Betty was a close second in that respect.

“Yeah, come on Matthew, Eleanor.” Juliet nudged her little brother, who rolled his eyes at her in response.

“Just get on with it.” Henry finally complained causing them to all look at the youngest member of the group.

“Charming Henry, absolutely charming,” Eleanor commented, her voice dropping in tone, which was her indicator of sarcasm. That trait, Matthew could pick up on, and Eleanor did it deliberately for him to allow him to join in with the chuckling.

“You love me really.” Henry murmured causing Eleanor’s eyebrows to raise at him.

“Actually, I love Matt.” Came her quick retort, but her eyes moved to Matt, who met her gaze before rubbing circles into the palm of her hand.

“I love you too.” Matthew’s quiet reply was just audible as all of them had fallen silent. None of them was used to the pair declaring their love just yet, and there was a quiet ‘aww’ at the sight of them together.

“Oh, stop being cute and tell us.” Kevin finally choked out, proud of his daughter and Mathew for overcoming all of their own trails and obstacles to get to this point.

“We were planning our trip to the museum tomorrow. The Natural History Museum and then erm some other stuff.” Matthew finally admitted, getting sick of all the teasing and attention being directed at them. Though in reality he was used to it. He was the son of Jughead Jones and Betty Jones after all. It came with the name.

“Other stuff?” Jughead asked curiously, slightly apprehensive at that. He became even more so when Matt looked down, but the sixteen-year-old then forced himself to meet his father’s gaze.

“My stuff, Dad. You know, Aspergic stuff and discovering that El doesn’t think like the typical neurotypical.” Matthew mumbled, but Jughead could understand why he hadn’t wanted to say that at first.

“Hey, don’t get embarrassed by it, Matt. You are who you are. You’re Matthew Forsythe Jones, not Aspergers Syndrome, but it has a place in your life. It doesn’t define who you are, and we all understand. You are who you are, and none of us cares that you’re Aspergic, Matthew. We love you all the same okay?” Jughead looked solely at his son, who glanced up at Jughead with a small smile on his lips at that.

“Okay, Dad, I understand.” Matthew murmured, but there was no shame in his tone. He knew that Jughead was right and he did indeed understand where he was coming from.

“Good and if anyone gives you a hard time for it, remind them that I used to be in a gang and that your girlfriend happens to do karate.” Jughead pointed out, smiling at the girl beside Matthew, who was a year off getting her third black belt. Matthew also glanced down at Eleanor, who moved to lean against him for a brief moment.

“I will do.” Matthew murmured in response, still transfixed by Eleanor.

“Good and thankfully the food is here.” Jughead pointed out as the food was brought over to their table slowly.

“Do you ever not think about your stomach?” Veronica asked him with genuine curiosity causing the rest of the table to burst out laughing.

“Nah, he’s a Jones. It’s the most important part of us.” Juliet reminded her with a smile before she tucked into the meal before her.

“That and your incredibly large hearts of gold.” Betty added causing her husband and children to lift their heads to look at her before she also commented: “Though your stomachs are probably the most important parts of you in your opinion at least.” With that, they all carried on eating.

...

Laying on their soft king-sized bed in their spacious hotel room, Jughead held Betty tightly to him as they stared up at the ceiling. “Are you happy?” He asked her in a hushed whisper causing her to glance up at him.

“I couldn’t be happier, Jug.” He nodded at that. “I love spending time with you and our babies as well as our friends.” He was about to respond when they heard squeaking coming from the room next door.

“That’s the room where Eleanor’s sleeping isn’t it?” He asked as Betty cringed when the same sound came from the other side of the room. “And that’ll be Juliet and Violet. Oh great. Why did we allow our kids to progress from three-year-olds to sixteen-year-olds?”

Betty shrugged before commenting. “If I remember correctly, you were sixteen when you lost your v-card, and I was only fifteen, and we did it on the sofa in your dad’s trailer.” Jughead chuckled at Betty’s frankness.

“We attempted to lose it on the kitchen counter in that very trailer originally.” They shared a smile and continued to laugh for a moment before Jughead spoke again, only this time he was much more serious. “Are you alright with this?”

“I’m not over the moon, but they’re safe. Matthew assured me as did Juliet. The girls both get regular checkups, and Matt assured me that he always uses a condom, which is what we can hope for. They're safe, and they’re growing up. I suppose we should just let it happen because they’re young and in love.” Betty looked up at him, and he knew what she hadn’t said.

“And we were like that once.” She nodded in agreement as Jughead pulled her close. “I love you so much, Betty.” He mumbled into her ear as she held him tightly.

“And I love you so much, Jughead.” With that and a gentle kiss they settled back down together before closing their eyes while the city of Berlin buzzed around them.

**Author's Note:**

> For reference, a neurotypical is just someone without any strand of autism or other neurological traits like dyslexia. It is a common word among the autistic community and it isn't intended to be cruel. Please don't take offense by it's use. It isn't an insult, it just helps us express someone who isn't like us and for someone like Matthew in this context I thought it would be useful and correct place to use it.


End file.
